Australia-Philippines joint training continues

The Joint Australian Training Team – Philippines (JATT-P) Program continues to strengthen the Defence relationship between both countries as it passes the halfway mark for 2025. Established in 2019, JATT-P has increased the number of exchange activities between the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). JATT-P’s activities typically involve the deployment of ADF Mobile Training Teams to the Philippines to conduct subject matter expert exchanges or to provide training for a specific skillset, mission, or area of military expertise. JATT-P’s activities focused on enhancing the AFP’s capacity for territorial defence. The expanded 2025 program includes more exchanges on essential roles in the Indo-Pacific region, including combat engineering, deployed air traffic control operations, artillery and joint fires, and airfield damage repair and survey assessment. This year, Australia and the Philippines are sharing best practice across a range of fields including infantry tactics and land operations, military public affairs, and on techniques to counter improvised explosive devices. Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral Justin Jones AO, CSC, RAN, said JATT-P had broadened interoperability between the ADF and AFP. “JATT-P’s value is in combined operations and exercises, and the knowledge and relationships we’ve built, that are delivering results in the field,” Vice Admiral Jones said. “This will be evident when we conduct Exercise Alon 25 together in the Philippines in August, which will prepare us to collectively respond to shared security challenges and contribute to a stable and secure region. JATT-P goes beyond sharing techniques and practices, as it fosters trust between Australia and the Philippines at the individual and organisational levels, further strengthening our defence partnership.” JATT-P Coordinator, Major Lachlan Newham, said the Mobile Training Teams would focus on operational planning, riverine and littoral planning, aviation maintenance, and armoured tactics. “The JATT-P is incorporating more air and maritime Mobile Training Teams, as well as increasing the complexity of the land and military planning Mobile Training Teams,” Major Newham said. “The ADF personnel who come to the Philippines bring with them an incredibly diverse array of skills and experience to share, and they’re keen to understand the experience and perspective of their AFP counterparts working in these roles. JATT-P has allowed our sailors, soldiers and aviators to return home with a greater understanding and respect for how their AFP counterparts operate and in the environment in which they serve. They also gain an appreciation of the AFP’s strategic perspective, and its unwavering commitment to defending the sovereignty of the Philippines.” For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Group Sales Director Simon Hadfield at [email protected]